Chocolate Churros with Salted Caramel Sauce

Name: Chocolate Churros with Salted Caramel Sauce
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 120 g muscovado or dark brown sugar (for sauce); 60 g unsalted butter (for sauce); 250 ml heavy cream; 100 g dark chocolate, chopped; 1 good pinch flaky sea salt; 100 g golden caster or granulated sugar (for coating); 2 tsp ground cinnamon; 200 g all-purpose flour; 50 g cocoa powder; 1 tsp baking powder; 1 tsp vanilla extract; 50 g unsalted butter, melted (for batter); 4 cups sunflower or vegetable oil, for frying; 1 pint vanilla ice cream, to serve

From the kitchen of Carly

Spanish-style churros with cocoa folded into the dough, fried until crackly, rolled in cinnamon sugar, and dipped in a chocolate-and-salted-caramel sauce that's worth the entire effort. Dessert as event. Get the oil to exactly 340°F. Hotter and the outside burns; cooler and the dough drinks oil. A candy thermometer is the right tool here.

Chocolate Churros with Salted Caramel Sauce

Prep: 20 min
Cook: 25 min
Total: 45 min
Servings: 4
Difficulty: medium

Ingredients

4 servings

120 gmuscovado or dark brown sugar (for sauce)
60 gunsalted butter (for sauce)
250 mlheavy cream
100 gdark chocolate, chopped
1 good pinchflaky sea salt
100 ggolden caster or granulated sugar (for coating)
2 tspground cinnamon
200 gall-purpose flour
50 gcocoa powder
1 tspbaking powder
1 tspvanilla extract
50 gunsalted butter, melted (for batter)
4 cupssunflower or vegetable oil, for frying
1 pintvanilla ice cream, to serve (optional)

Instructions

Make the sauce first; it can sit warm while you fry the churros.
Combine the muscovado sugar and 60g butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer until the sugar has melted, about 3 minutes.
Stir in the heavy cream. Simmer 2 to 3 minutes until smooth.
Pull off the heat. Stir in a pinch of flaky sea salt and the chopped chocolate. Keep stirring 2 to 3 minutes until the chocolate fully melts. Cover and keep warm.
Make the cinnamon coating. Mix the caster sugar, cinnamon, and a small pinch of fine sea salt on a wide plate. Set aside.
Make the churro batter. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and a generous pinch of salt.
Stir in the vanilla extract and 50g melted butter.
Carefully pour in 250 to 300 ml of just-boiled water from a kettle. Whisk vigorously to make a smooth, very thick batter (it should hold a piped shape).
Let the batter cool 5 minutes. Scoop into a piping bag fitted with a medium star nozzle (or a zip-top bag with a star tip).
Heat the oil in a deep heavy pot to 340°F (170°C). Use a thermometer; oil too hot burns the outside before the inside cooks.
Pipe 5- to 6-inch lengths directly into the oil, snipping each off with kitchen scissors as you go. Fry 4 to 5 churros at a time so you don't crowd the pot.
Cook 3 to 4 minutes total, turning with a slotted spoon, until the churros are deeply colored and crisp. Lift onto a wire rack.
While still hot, roll each churro in the cinnamon sugar.
Serve immediately on a warm plate with the chocolate-caramel sauce alongside for dipping. Vanilla ice cream optional but recommended.

Substitutions

deep-frying to air-fryer at 380°F for 6-8 minutes per batch. Lighter, less indulgent. Brush with melted butter before air-frying for crisp exterior.
cocoa powder to skip and add 50g extra flour. Plain churros (no chocolate) are equally classic. Keep the cinnamon-sugar coating; pair with chocolate sauce.
muscovado sugar to dark brown sugar. Muscovado is more molasses-y but most US groceries don't stock it. Dark brown sugar is the close substitute.

Pairs well with: Vanilla bean ice cream alongside, A small espresso or hot chocolate, Fresh strawberries or raspberries on the side

Adapted from TheMealDB.